This Thanksgiving, I did something I never thought I would do and, in fact, almost always try to avoid: I went shopping on Black Friday.
I didn’t stake a tent outside of a Big Box store or sprint to the $5 DVD bin, but I ventured into the mayhem nonetheless and it was a great deal that lulled me there. Best Buy was offering a Nikon D3000 bundle with body, 2 lenses, a 10 GB memory card and a bag for $599, well-below other deals for the same camera at competing stores. As I mentioned in a previous post, I’ve been shopping for a DSLR for a few months now. I initially contemplated saving for a more advanced DSLR, but the D3000′s positive reviews and its relatively affordable pricetag changed my mind. Chalk one up for the holiday marketers.
So far, the D3000 has completely exceeded my expectations, and its ease of use compared to quality of images sets it apart from similar cameras. It’s got enough customizable options to appeal to the budding and seasoned photographers alike, and the ‘Auto’ function makes some great images for a point-and-shoot setting.
I spent a day last week at Old Man’s Cave in Hocking Hills State Park near Athens, OH to christen the new camera, and, after experimenting with different F-stop and shutter speed combinations, I feel like I got the hang of it. I’ve been poring through the user manual and reading Nikon message boards online, and when I get discouraged about a series of shots I’ve taken, I just look at the D3000′s Flickr page and rest assured that, in time, I’ll learn the ins and outs of Digital Single Reflex Lens photography. That’s the hope, anyway.
Below are some photos I’ve taken in the past couple of weeks.
